


Soft

by bisexualreina



Category: Sex Education (TV)
Genre: Family Fluff, Fluff, Other, Otis and Maeve, Post Season 2 Finale, jean and otis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:40:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27237406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bisexualreina/pseuds/bisexualreina
Summary: Jean wants to spend her last outing with Otis before the new sibling comes, but their timing is horrible
Comments: 11
Kudos: 31





	Soft

_“Just a trip to the lake.”_

Otis knew how much his mother wanted to spend one of their last lonesome weekends together before the unexpected, yet highly anticipated little sister came into the picture, and he felt eager to oblige her requests. Jakob figured he’d do the same and took the opportunity to venture into the misty forest with Ola and her sister for a Nyman family camping extravaganza, which Ola had been quite excited for.

Unlike Otis she had always had a decently lighthearted and close relationship with her only remaining parent, and he took to her example as he tried to better himself, taking into account the sheer devotion that his mother consciously put in with him, no matter how much of an arse he had been. 

He happily loaded the cooler full of items that they would need for their day trip, his mother’s condition making it less appealing to sleep in tents along the sandy lake, given that at this point she could barely get out of bed if a pillow was out of place. He slid his dead phone out of his pocket and shrugged, all of the chargers had been packed and loaded, so he just figured it would have to revive itself along the way.

Jean had been readying herself upstairs when he called out that he’d be out to the car to load it up and that he would be back shortly, but with the lack of response he simply figured that she hadn’t heard him.

The jog up the driveway was no problem for him regularly, but with the heavy cooler in hand he moved slowly, careful not to drop the contents, risking his normally level headed mother’s wrath. As he approached the blue station wagon his hands dug for the keys, but at their absence he knew that he had forgotten them inside, and with that he was jogging back down the steps with a hint of annoyance pushing him back into the kitchen.

His eyes scanned the counter top but they were nowhere to be seen, dragging him towards the stairs where he figured they resided on his desk or dresser. He was taking two steps at a time, wary of the ice that would be melting if he left the contents out unattended.

He began to cross the hall when he heard a shuffling coming from the master bedroom. He shrugged and figured that it was just his mother finishing up and retrieved the keys from his desk, swiftly grabbing his hat and pair of sunglasses that would protect his easily burnt skin from the sun.

His steps turned into a saunter as he wandered into his mother’s room, knowing he’d feel better maneuvering the staircase with her, her balance quite shit in this recent ending stretch of her pregnancy. He could hear a murmuring on the other side of her bathroom making him sigh and gently knock on the mahogany door.

“Everything is loaded outside, when you’re ready we can head up to the car. Eric said he’d be here in ten minutes to get the keys from us.” He offered, raising his voice over whatever she was listening to or babbling on about, but the lack of response caused him to swallow and this time carefully push on the door that gave way, but before he could push any further the door was swinging open and Jean reappeared, clad in a blush floral number, her now long hair braided loosely behind her back.

“Sorry, alright let’s head out.” She exhaled, a hint of wavering in her tight voice as she tried her best not to waddle towards the stairs, clutching the railing with a force that he hadn’t yet seen, even when she had lost her footing a few times. He narrowed his eyes and carefully began to descend first, in the case that she did trip he had the advantage of gravity on his side.

They both met the ground floor with ease, allowing him to gather a few more bags that were sitting in the kitchen near the door. He awkwardly shuffled with all their things and turned to find that he was walking all on his own, causing him to backtrack into the living room to see where his mother was.

“Mom, what did you forget?” He called, knowing her brain was prone to slipping some things at this point, but as he reemerged from the foyer he found her with a white knuckled grip on the back of the sofa, her eyes pinched shut with all her might. The sight immediately shook him to his core, his mother, only caretaker, in discomfort always sending a rush of anxiety over him ever since he was a child, as a little kid if she had a stomach bug, it had the ability to send him into fits.

Soon all of his belongings were at his feet as he crept towards her, but with each step he watched her muffle out a moan and drop her jaw open, the relaxed joint causing something much deeper to come out of her mouth.

“Mom?” He cried, now immediately at her side, his hand nervously finding hers as she flashed her eyes open, and to his surprise they were filled with determined yet panicked tears.

“Is it her? Is she coming?” He demanded, but by the intense grip on the couch and the pained look in her expression, he already knew the answer, panic now spreading through the both of them as he tried to think of what came next.

Hospital. He knew that much and he could do that, all of the other people would be called and dealt with later, his job right now was to just get her out of the house and to the hospital.

“Alright- ah, it’s okay. _You_ are okay and you both are going to be okay.” He stammered, awkwardly giving her shoulder a pat before digging his keys out of his pocket, clutching them in one hand while attempting to peel hers off of the back of the sofa with the other.

“We need to go right now.” He declared, but with one movement he found her groaning down towards the floor, his eyes widening in pure fright as her hand gripped his with such an indescribable force.

“I can’t- too far.” She managed, her words sending jolts of fear through his body as he fumbled for his dead phone, cursing it before scanning the area for hers, he knew she probably kept it close, but authorities were needed, not an eighteen year old boy with fairly limited female anatomy knowledge.

“Okay, I’m going to call someone to try and get you an ambulance or some medical attention.” He tried to comfort, but before he could move Jean found herself lowering farther and farther behind the couch, everything in her dragging her down with another one of those horrendous moans.

“Otis…” She breathed tightly, her words short enough for her to get them out for a moment before returning to the task at hand.

“I know this is scary.” She trailed, trying her hardest to keep everything contained at least until she got some help or distance from her anxious son whom she had never planned on having present, both of them mutually agreeing on that much when it came to her birth plan.

“But I _need_ your help.” She cried, both of them barely noticing the sound of the front door opening and closing, the sound of urgent footsteps filling the room. Otis looked up to find his brunette partner standing wide eyed in the living room staring over at the both of them.

“I just came to get the key for Eric…he was running behind…” Maeve trailed off, her eyes falling on the woman that she had come to enjoy following her time with Otis. She had welcomed her into her home and listened to all of the troubles regarding everything that was Erin Wiley, but now she found her crouching against the sofa, her head digging into the upholstery of it with her ill equipped son by her side.

“Jean…are you alright?” Maeve questioned warily as the older woman groaned over her triage question, now grunting slightly as she clung to the furniture tightly. Otis jumped at the sound, now panicked eyes begging her to help, unsure of what else to do but just sit and hold her hand.

Maeve just nodded and swiftly moved towards the both of them, using one hand to pull her hair back, the other resting on Jean’s shoulder while she continued to make rumbling noises towards the floor.

“She said she can’t get up the driveway, Maeve what do I do!” He cried nervously, but she just held a finger up at him and motioned for him to exhale swiftly. 

“Of course she can’t she’s having a baby…” Maeve grumbled, the mention of her causing Jean to look up momentarily at her son and now his girlfriend who just kindly smiled in her direction. She felt mortified, her poor son would need so much counseling after this, once again her doing.

“Sorry…I just…hoo…” She winced, releasing her son’s hand to find the wooden frame of the sofa to exert her strength onto, her baby now felt to be between her knees, nearly low enough to just tumble out, and these twinges of pain had amplified in just an hour, shocking her more than anything.

“No need to apologize, you sound like you’re doing marvelously, plus babies are born all the time where I live, the hills are too hard for the moms and they can’t gauge when they need to leave. I think we can manage until Otis calls the paramedics.” Maeve urged, passing her phone over before resuming her spot beside the woman, working her hands on the muscle of her back like she had seen Cynthia do time and time again when one of the newest trailer residents made a hasty entrance into the world.

Before the operator could pick up both of them watched as Jean began to turn, using the sofa as an anchor to flip around and press her back into the couch frame to help her squat, gasping urgently. Maeve watched nervously as she began to work at her undergarments beneath the layered, floral dress that she had on.

“Otis…Otis I think it’s just going to happen right here.” Maeve urged, now reaching over to help get the underwear off, her hands surprisingly steady for what she was witnessing at the moment. Before he got the chance to react to that, both watched as her eyes flew open and a swift gush of fluid popped out of her, managing to get Maeve’s purple jacket. 

“I think it’s coming!” Jean was barely able to groan as the both of them watched in horror as she began pushing this baby out. Otis just fumbled with the phone and tossed it to the side, crawling next to Maeve who just shrugged her jacket off and glanced up at Jean who had fistfuls of her dress clutched at her knees.

“What do we _do_?!” Otis cried, but Maeve took a swift breath and began lifting the skirt of the pink floral dress to look and see what was going on. 

“Yeah…it’s coming, Jean, don’t worry. She’s just really eager to come.” Maeve encouraged, noticing how she could see the head peaking out with each exhale she heaved.

“Otis, come over here and hold your mom’s hand and talk to her. I am going to get up for _two seconds_ to find a towel.” Maeve instructed, causing her frightened boyfriend to crawl towards his mother who was breathing with her eyes squeezed tightly shut.

“It’s alright mom…Maeve has done this before…I guess…” He trailed off, unsure of what to do or say in this moment, still incredibly frightened. He carefully peeled her hand away from the material of her dress and held it, watching as her eyes opened and began to spill tears onto her cheeks.

“I’m sorry, Otis…” She groaned, hissing a breath through her teeth, the pain in her body working it’s way up again, still not at it’s peak quite yet.

“This was supposed to just be a regular day at the lake…not this! We never got to spend our day together!” She cried, her mind clearly running ten thousand miles a minute while this was happening. He felt his heart sink as he scooted a bit closer, carefully slithering an arm around her shoulders to pull them both close, the other one keeping her iron grip.

“Mom, I got seventeen, almost eighteen _full_ years of just the two of us, and those were the best times of all. You don’t need to worry about that right now.” He urged, feeling quite guilty that even while her second child was fighting it’s way out dramatically, she was still focused on him.

Maeve jogged back in with a pile of items in her hands, setting them on the floor where the three of them were crouching, the guttural noises telling the both of them that it wouldn’t be long at this point.

“I’m going to move your skirt, Jean. I would hate to get the pretty fabric ruined.” Maeve smiled, her demeanor now soft and gentle, such a contrast to the eye rolling _cockbiter_ persona she had built for others to see.

Otis simply pressed his cheek onto the soft blonde hair on top of his mother’s head, feeling her squeeze his hand for that extra needed support.

“The head is coming out-!” Jean announced, her voice nearly an octave higher than what it had been two seconds before. The warning was enough for Maeve to grab a towel and hold her hands out as she marveled at the baby emerging into her hands.

Jean shrieked at the natural movements of the baby twisting into the young girl’s hands, finally expelling into the world. Otis gasped in shock as his mom flinched so forcefully at the movement, swiftly catching her to prevent her from slipping.

“Good job, Mom! Holy shit!” He cried, the mangled moan coming from her lungs relieved with the immediate release of her muscles, now realizing how clammy she truly was under the scratchy material of the dress.

Otis helped her onto the floor after a towel was moved beneath her bottom, allowing her to let go and take the bundle in the towel into her arms. He watched in awe before looking over at Maeve who just smiled and bat away her own budding tears, rising to her feet to find her phone that Otis had discarded to finally properly call an ambulance and to give them some time.

Jean was enamored with her newest little one that was mewling into her chest, truly amazed that she had come out of her. Her own tears were falling unchecked over the tiniest little life that she had ever held in her arms. Looking up at her nearly grown son who was now smiling softly at the little girl, offering a finger over her shoulder to her tiny hand.

“Aren’t you going to wipe her off, she’s all wet and goopy?” Otis questioned, but Jean just chuckled softly and shook her head at him, carefully wiping some of the fluid off of her face and nose. 

“Her skin absorbs it, that’s what makes it so soft.” She explained, her hand rubbing the material of the rough towel, frowning momentarily before pulling the towel away, revealing the little girl’s _tiny_ frame cuddled warmly on the scratchy material of her dress.

Maeve returned with the phone against her ear and two pieces of yarn and scissors, listening to the operator who instructed her to tie the yarn onto the cord, scanning the both of them before smiling and handing the scissors to Otis, his eyes instantly widening before waving her away.

“Oh come on, Otis, it’s just using scissors.” Jean shrugged, his mother’s blessing making him sigh before taking the instrument from his girlfriend, cutting where she indicated, separating the two from each other.

“Perfect, now can you fetch me the fluffy sherpa from the couch?” She yawned softly, using her one free hand to take the blanket from her doting son, spreading it across her lap. 

Otis watched as she lifted the tiny baby from her chest, causing his sister to squeal and flinch at the absence of her mother’s warmth. However Jean promptly tucked the little button on top of the soft fabric, gathering it around her little body before gathering her into her arms again.

“There you go, it’s alright, that towel was too rough for you, wasn’t it?” Jean crooned, the baby croaking as a response to the sound of her mother’s voice, raising a balled fist against her soft little cheek. Otis couldn’t help but look over in curiosity, brushing one of his fingers on the bottom of her little exposed foot.

“Do you want to hold her?” Jean questioned, offering the little one over to her eldest who nodded and carefully took the wiggling baby from their mother. He recalled what he had once said to Maeve, how he wasn’t good with babies or kids, how he had lost Elsie after just minutes of watching her, that sentiment worrying him as he stared down at such a breakable infant.

“She’s really cute.” He shrugged, glancing at his mother for confirmation that he was doing this correctly, but she just grinned and leaned closer to get a better look at both of her children interacting.

“She looks like you did when you were born, you both have such dark hair.” Jean smiled, brushing some stray wisps out of her son’s face, her touch not losing any of it’s tenderness as she shifted her attention back and forth between her two kids.

They both sat in silence for a moment while the baby wiggled in Otis’ arms, fussing softly into the blanket, the sound making him tense as he promptly passed her back.

“Sorry you had to witness…all this, I know we talked about boundaries and all that.” Jean sighed, still feeling some of Otis’ lingering nerves, scrunching her nose at him apologetically, her hand now moving to the bottom of her stomach where she could feel the beginnings of more cramps, ready to expel the final organ. 

The wheels of the stretcher could be heard coming down the rocky steps, causing Maeve to jump up and let them in, filling the medics in on the events that had gone on in the past half hour.

“I’m glad I was here, it was actually pretty amazing how you just did that right here in our living room.” Otis chuckled as the kind medics surrounded them, both women smiling up at Jean while taking a look under her dress, pushing it back to gently massage her cramping middle.

“I’m glad you were here, even if we couldn’t go to the lake.” She smiled, grunting briefly when the medic instructed her to, gathering her placenta into a bucket.

Once everything seemed settled the three of them helped her to her feet once more, helping her to the stretcher with ease. Otis glanced over once more at his sister who was contently sucking on her little fingers, her little eyes closed as she slept soundly cuddled close to their mom.

Maeve swiftly swooped in and placed his phone in his hand with a charger connected to it, unsure of what to do next, grabbing his jacket from the rack.   
“Go spend some family time.” Maeve winked, urging him off and assuring him that she’d take care of the mess and that she’d give him a ring. He waited a moment to linger, but he was briskly snapped back into reality at the sound of his sister, making him blush and wave as he jogged out the door. 

Maeve couldn’t help but grin, as goofy and idiotic as he was, he fit in quite well with this little family, the love abundant between their little pack, which was now a few feet larger.


End file.
